Strap vamp shoe



L. C. 'WHITE STRAP VAMP SHOE Filed June 29, 1956 Sept. 30, 1958 7 INVENTOR. I ZEJZ/E 6. "49/75 By ATTORNEY United ta s Pa STRAP VAMP SHOE Application June 29, 1956, Serial No. 594,746 I 3 Claims. (Cl. 36--11.5)

This invention relates to a shoe having a unitary textile fabric strap vamp, which has a high' resistance to rip or tear where the straps join the central portion'of the vamp, and which also has, an improved appearance and greater comfort.

Heretofore, textile fabric strap vamps have been assembled by cutting individual straps from narrow strips offabric and sewing two or more of the straps together intermediate their ends to form the straps on each side of the vamp. An assembled strap vamp of that type has poor resistance to rip or tear where the straps are joined, and the stitched seam increases the cost, detracts from the appearance and produces a ridge which may be uncomfortable to the foot.

In accordance with the present invention a high resistance to rip, an improved appearance, and greater comfort is provided by forming the'vamp as a unit from interconnected strands in which each of the straps is provided with transverse filler strands and at least one of such strands extend continuously back and forth across the central portion of the vamp to unite said straps thereto and form a smooth union between the straps and the connecting central portion of the vamp. A series of such vamps may be produced in a strip on a-warp knitting machine and the individual vamps are cut from the strips. This is a very economical method of producing the vamp.

This invention, its objects andadvantages will be further described in reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is an isometric view of a shoe embodying the invention, in which the view is taken from the front quarter looking down on the shoe;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a strip of fabric from which the individual vamps for the shoe are cut;

Fig. 3 is an isometric view of the shoe similar to that shown in Fig. 1, but illustrating a modification thereof;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a strip of fabric from which vamps are cut for the shoe shown in Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged plan view of the vamp strip shown in Fig. 2 within the area A enclosed by the dot and dash lines.

Referring to Fig. l of the drawings, a shoe embodying this invention comprises a strap vamp 11, and an insole 12 and an outsole 13 between which the ends of the vamp straps 14 are secured in any usual manner. The shoe 10 may be provided with a heel strap 15 and an elastic front strap 16, or any other type of quarter for retaining the shoe on the foot.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, the vamps 11 are cut from a textile strip 17 provided with elongated openings 18 separated by continuous transverse areas 19, which form the central portion 19 of the vamp when the strip 17 is out along the converging dot and dash lines 20. The openings 18 divide the strip 17 into three narrow bands 21, which extend between the continuous transverse areas 19. The diagonal cuts 20 extend through the centerof the central narrow band 21 to form the vamp straps 14 on each side of the central portion 19 of the vamp.

The strip 17 may be formed on a Warp knitting machine provided with a mechanism for laying in a filler strand 22 for each of the narrow bands 21, which are draped continuously back and forth across the bands 21. One of the filler strands 22 is continuously draped across the continuous portion 19 of the strip, while the other two filler strands 22 are carried longitudinally through the continuous transverse portion 19, and are then draped back and forth across the ncxt succeeding narrow bands 21. As illustrated in Fig. 2 the lower filler strand 22 is draped back and forth acrossthe continuous portion 19, and the filler strands 22 in the central and upper narrow bands 21 are carried along the longitudinal paths 23 through the continuous transverse portion 19.

Asshown in Fig. 5,-each of the transverse runs 24 of the filler strands 22 is laid into the loops 25 of the longitudinal knitted-strands 26, and which as illustrated are the double chain stitch type. This arrangement provides a selvage edge 27 on-each side of the bands 21 and on the outside of the continuous transverse portions 19 of the strip 17. Each of the knitted strands 26 is interlocked with its adjacent strand throughout the strip 17. For clearness of illustration, the interlocking stitches are shown only in the central area 19, where the strands 26' on the adjacent sides of the bands 21 are shown as interlocked. Such interlocking assists in preventing the strip 17 from ripping longitudinally.

A modified type of shoe 28 is shown in Fig. 3, in which the vamp 29 is provided with two straps 30 on each side of the central portion 31 of the vamp. In that case the strip 32 from which the vamps 29 are cut is formed with two narrow bands 33. As shown in Fig. 4 the narrow bands 33 are each provided with a filler strand 34 which is draped back and forth across the bands, and each of the filler strands 34 are draped across the central portion 31 of the vamp strip 32. However, only one of the filler strands 32 may have been draped across the central portion 31, and the only filler strand may have been brought up longitudinally through the central portion 31 in the same manner as the longitudinal runs 23 of the filler strands 22 shown in Fig. 2. It will also be understood that all of the filler strands 22 may be draped across the entire central portion 19 shown in Fig. 2 similar to the draping of the plurality of filler strands shown in Fig. 4 without extending the strands along the longitudinal path 23, as shown in Fig. 2. The vamps 29 are cut from the strips 32 in Fig. 4 by cutting along the converging dot and dash lines 35 which pass through the center of the openings 36 in the vamp strip 32. The filler strands 34 are laid in loops of the longitudinal knitted strands 37 to tie the filler strands together. Selvage edges are formed on each side of the narrow bands 33 and on the outside of the strip 32 to make the edges ravel-resistant in the same manner as shown in connection with Figs. 2 and 5.

Two forms of the invention are shown and described herein. However, it will be understood that changes in the details as shown and described may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a shoe, a unitary textile fabric strap vamp comprising a central portion and at least two straps extending from each side thereof and attached to the bottom of said shoe, each of said straps having a continuous filler strand extending back and forth transversely of the straps and through said central portion and forming similar filler strands for the straps on the opposite side of said central portion, at least one of said continuous filler strands extending back and forth transverse filler strand adapted to tie said fabric together 5 and formravel resistantedges'throughout'saidyarnp," 2. In combination witha shoe, -a' unitary textile" fabric strap-vamp -comprising"a central portion and-at least two"straps-extendingfrom eaeh "side' thereof and attachedto-the bottorrr'of' said shoe, each of said straps 10 having a continuous filler "strand extending back and fort-htransversely of'the -straps on theoppositesides of said-central portion one ofsaid continuous filler strands extendingbackand-forth transversely of the entire width of said central-portiomofsaid-vamp,'whereby theunion 15 between said-straps'andsaid'central'portion of"said' vamp :isrenderedtear'resistant, the other ofsaidfiller strands extending 1 longitudinally"through said "central portion *i11 -li]18'WiththB unionsoftheedges of the adja-' cent-strapson oppositesides-of said Central portion, and longitudinalstrands interconnected With said transverse a filler strands-adapted totiesaid'fabric together-and form ravel resistant ed gesthroughout saidvarnpr 3. -Incombination with a shoe,-a unitary textile fabric strap vamp comprising a central portion and three straps extending from each side thereof and -attached-to the bottornof said shoe; said straps on each side being placed oppositeia strap on the otherside; each of-'said"-straps' having a continuous filler strand extending back and forth transversely on the straps on the opposite sides of said central portion, said continuous filler strands in two opposite outside straps extending back and forth transversely of the entire Width of said central portion of said vamp, whereby the union between said straps and said central portion of said vamp-is-rendered tear resistant, the other of said filler strandsextending longitudinally through said central portion in line with the unions of the edges of theadjacenttstraps .on: opposite-sides of said" central portion, andplongitudinalm strands interconnected with said transverse filler strands adapted totie'saidfabric together and form ravel resistant edgesthroughputsaid vamp.

References Cited in file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

